Interview With Misty Feather INTERVIEW

Choose a team

For this interview I thought I might try to get a point of view of a streamer who is console based. Console streaming is very limited to the look of your stream when it comes to not having a capture card. I wanted to talk to a console streaming to see how it is to grow on the platform as well as see their opinions on streaming and their advice. The person who I spoke to is Misty Feather, here is a little about her. ‘My name is Louisa Ward but to my friends and viewers, I am Luna/Misty! I’m a 20yr old Forensic Science and CSI student who originated from North Yorkshire in the UK.’

Jessica: ‘What is your opinion on Esports?’
Luna: ‘Esports used to be something I didn’t really care for, I wasn’t too interested in any of the games that had Esports teams, nor did I have the patience to watch them. However during the Overwatch Inaugural Season, I decided to give eSports a chance and eventually came to really enjoy the league— it’s no secret to the people that know me that I have an undying love for the LA Gladiators and I would often stay up until the early hours of the morning just to watch my team participate. As it stands, I’ve only watched OWL but in time, I definitely want to start getting into other games with dedicated eSports teams as it’s honestly an experience and a half to watch them!’

Jessica: ‘Would you ever want to get involved with an Esports team or become a ‘pro’ gamer?’
Luna: ‘I do often wish that I could make it into an Esports team and become a well-known ‘pro’ gamer but I know my limits and at this moment in time, I don’t think it’s a goal I could ever achieve. Yes, it’s a wonderful dream to have but I want to prioritise my education and I also do not have any of the experience that current pro’s have— I have only been casually gaming for about two years now so I’ve got a lot more practice ahead of me before I can make real efforts to go pro.’
Jessica: ‘With streaming, what inspired you to stream in the first place?’
Luna: ‘Surefour was my biggest inspiration to start streaming properly. I streamed once or twice before knowing who he was and those streams were just for the laughs but after finding him and seeing just how big of an impact he made on people’s lives, I knew in that moment that I wanted to be someone like that. I wanted to be someone who could bring light into people’s days and give them some entertaining content to help them forget the things that lingered unhealthily on their minds. I know I may not be able to change as many lives as he can, but as long as I can make that change in one- or two-people’s lives, I’m happy. I want to spread laughter and I want to experience things alongside others so we can all laugh together or cry together— I want to be a streamer that people can spend time with and not feel like they’re alone.’
Jessica: ‘How do you keep a healthy mentality and a healthy lifestyle?’
Luna: ‘I’m lucky enough to be attending university at the moment and so I get a lot of exercise travelling around my campus or actively walking to the park. There are also plenty of places to eat around here and shops are in walking distance so it’s not too hard to buy the things I need to make myself dinners etc. I have a few days where I won’t stream and I’ll take that time to recover energy by reading books, drawing pictures or even playing a few games on my own and this is to prioritise my mental health as I’m an introvert and need the time to relax. Streaming is a big part of my life but I always make sure to put myself first and I think that’s a good mindset to be in because it stops me from overworking myself.’
Jessica: ‘What would your advice be to streamers and gamers who want to prioritise gaming/streaming but also want to lead a healthy lifestyle?’
Luna: ‘It’s very admirable that you want to prioritise gaming/streaming and you should definitely work hard toward achieving goals regarding it but ALWAYS put your health first. Set a streaming schedule that is comfortable for you but also leaves you with enough free time to focus on your health, both mental and physical. People who watch your streams are often there because they want to see you, not always the games you play, and it’s important that you are in the best condition you can be because if you’re enjoying yourself, that energy is reflected to your audience.’

Jessica: ‘Has gaming/streaming helped you overcome challenges in your life?’Luna: ‘I still struggle a great deal with anxiety and depression but streaming has definitely helped me find my voice. I never used to correct people in public if they got my order wrong or if I was being scammed out of something but streaming to an audience helped me find the strength to stand up and make sure I could correct any mistakes instead of silently glossing over it in hopes that I could avoid the confrontation. I’m also currently working on getting used to using a facecam; I’m pretty shy irl and so it’s a huge step for me to include a facecam on my streams. At the moment it’s only facecam Fridays but eventually, I hope to have the confidence to use it every time I stream and when I can do that, I have no doubt that it’ll help with my confidence irl.’
Jessica: ‘Have you ever had to deal with toxic behaviour instream or games?’
Luna: ‘I’m used to getting a lot of toxic messages from salty players whenever I’m playing games like Overwatch or Dead by Daylight but it’s rarely anything more than a few messages before they give up and leave me alone. I did however, experience something a few weeks ago that left a bad taste in my mouth and it changed my perspective slightly on how safe I was when playing online. I was paired up with two guys in an Apex game and the game didn’t go all that well— one of them dropped us at the hot zone and I was unfortunately the first one to get knocked down. I didn’t kick off or argue, I did what I normally did and waited to see if anyone could reach my banner in time (I will only ever leave if my squad dies or my respawn times out). Anyway, they cleared the area but refused to pick up my banner and instead chose to throw a lot of sexist slurs and swear words toward me whilst also preaching that people like me should not be able to play games like this and that I should just stop playing altogether. This went on for a few minutes and I was fairly surprised to hear some of the things they had to say but I drew a lone and didn’t waste any more time in leaving that game. It was an unpleasant experience to say the least but luckily the only one I’ve experienced so far.’

Jessica: ‘How would you describe your attitude towards streaming?’
Luna: ‘At the moment, it’s a hobby and not a ‘job’ so even though I do put time and effort into my streams, I’ll sometimes take the time off if I feel like I need to. I absolutely adore streaming though and it’s so much fun to be able to play games and have a good laugh alongside other people, making it a hobby that I do not intend to give up any time soon! I may have a few rough patches every now and then but I’ll always find a way to push through them— for myself and for my viewers.’
Jessica: ‘How long have you been streaming for?’
Luna: ‘About 7 months or so. I started taking streaming seriously a month before I began university (so around August 2018)’
Jessica: ‘What advice would you give to people who have just started streaming?’
Luna: ‘The hardest part of streaming is getting started and it can be disheartening to see that you may not be streaming to anyone but keep pushing, keep finding ways to put your name out there and you’ll start to draw in a few loyal viewers. Keep in mind though that big numbers are not that important either; as long as you’re having fun and know that there are a few viewers who are enjoying your gameplay, you’re doing absolutely fantastic. Be yourself, because that’s what people want to see.’

Thank you so much to Luna for taking her time to answer these questions, I hope Luna continues to grow and develop. And also, I hope you reading this can take some advice and tips from Luna as well as understand what it takes to become a streamer as well as understanding what goes on behind the streams when streaming.